The present invention relates to a disk drive apparatus which is applicable to, for example, a floppy disk drive apparatus, etc.
A disk drive apparatus such as a floppy disk drive apparatus is widely used in a personal computer, an office computer, a word processor, etc., and presents remarkable diffusion.
FIG. 7 shows a conventional disk drive apparatus. Referring to FIG. 7, reference numeral 1 designates generally a chassis having a spindle motor shaft 2 as a center of disk rotation, which is housed, for example, in a device box (not shown) of a personal computer, etc., and formed by a bottomed box which is entirely open forward and has a housing space 1a into which a disk cartridge 3 is inserted. Erectly arranged to the bottom of the chassis 1 in a rear right side portion thereof are a holding wall 4 having a through hole 4a which is open in the longitudinal direction and a support shaft 5 which is parallel therewith at predetermined intervals, whereas protuberanly arranged to the bottom of the chassis 1 in a front end portion thereof are two spring engaging lugs 6 which are parallel with each other at predetermined intervals in the right and left direction. Moreover, the chassis 1 has both side walls formed with guide grooves 7 extending vertically, only two left ones of which being shown.
8 and 9 designate two pairs of protrusions parallel with each other at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction, which are mounted to the bottom of the chassis 1 for enabling a guiding of a slide plate as will be described later in the longitudinal direction. These pairs of protrusions 8, 9 are arranged parallel with each other at predetermined intervals in the left and right direction. The rear protrusions 9 have a conical cartridge positioning portion 9a having an outer diameter which is reduced to a pointed end, respectively.
10 designates a slide plate formed in a C-shape as viewed in a section thereof and having an ejector button 11 for ejecting the disk cartridge in a front edge right side portion thereof, which comprises a bottom plate 12 having a recess 12a formed in an U-shape as viewed in a plane thereof and opposed to the spindle motor shaft 2 and first long holes 12b opposed to the spring engaging lugs 6, and two side plates 13 erectly arranged to the bottom plate 12 in both side portions thereof and opposed to each other at predetermined intervals, and is movably disposed within the chassis 1.
The bottom plate 12 of the slide plate 10 has recesses 14 and second long holes 15 extending in the longitudinal direction and opposed to the protrusions 8, 9, and spring engaging holes 16 corresponding to the spring engaging lugs 6. Additionally, mounted to the bottom plate 12 of the slide plate 10 in a rear edge thereof is a lock claw 17 which protrudes downward.
On the other hand, the bottom plate 12 of the slide plate 10 has four cam grooves 18 which are inclined to rise diagonally forward. A rack 19 is arranged in the rear of the cam grooves 18 so as to extend in the longitudinal direction.
20 designates two tension coil springs for biasing the slide plate 10 forward, which have both ends engaged with the spring engaging lugs 6 and the spring engaging holes 16.
21 designates a trigger arm having an engaging surface 21a corresponding to the lock claw 17 and a guide surface 21b, which is rotatably arranged to the support shaft 5, and has an upper end face with which an arm manipulator 22 having a spring engaging protrusion 22a is integrally formed so as to protrude sideward.
23 designates a torsion spring for rotatably biasing the trigger arm 21 in the direction of engaging the slide plate 10, which has a coil portion disposed around the support shaft 5 and both ends engaged with the protrusion 22a and the holding wall 4.
24 designates a stepping motor for carrying out head carriage motion, which is fixed to the chassis 1 in a rear end portion thereof. The stepping motor 24 has an output shaft 25 constructed by a lead screw bar extending in the longitudinal direction and having a spiral V-shaped groove 25a, and a pointed end supported in the through hole 4a of the holding wall 4 through a bearing (not shown).
26 designates a guide bar extending in the longitudinal direction, which is held to the chassis 1 in a rear center portion thereof, and constructed to guide a head carriage as will be described later in the longitudinal direction.
27 designates the head carriage having a needle pin 28 which protrudes diagonally rearward and a plate spring 29 which presses the needle pin 28 in the V-shaped groove 25a of the output shaft 25, which is movably inserted into the guide bar 26 and disposed above the chassis 1. The head carriage 27 has a pointed end at which a first head 30 is held for reading information recorded on a disk, and a rear upper end at which a head arm 32 having a second head 31 corresponding to the first head 30 is swingably mounted through a resilient member 33. The head arm 32 is rotatably biased by a torsion spring 34 in the direction that the second head 31 approaches the first head 30, and has one side edge with which a stopper 32a for restricting arm rotation is integrally formed so as to protrude sideward.
36 designates a cartridge holder for removably holding the disk cartridge 3, which is arranged in the slide plate 10 to be movable upward and downward. The cartridge holder 36 has both side ends at which the cam grooves 18 and rollers 37 as a convex portion opposed to the guide grooves 7 are rotatably supported, and an upper end one side edge at which standing lug 38 having an engaging hole 38a which is open on either side is arranged. Additionally, the cartridge holder 36 is constructed to release an engagement of the lock claw 17 with the engaging surface 21a by pressing of the disk cartridge 3 toward the arm manipulator 22, to approach the bottom plate 12 with forward movement of the slide plate 10, and to separate from the bottom plate 12 with rearward movement of the slide plate 10 by pressing of the ejector button 11.
39 designates an arm for opening and closing a shutter 3a of the disk cartridge 3, which is rotatably arranged at the upper end one side edge of the holder 36. An engaging lug 40 is integrally formed with the arm 39 so as to protrude upward.
41 designates a tension coil spring for providing a return behavior to the arm 39, which has both ends engaged with the engaging lug 40 and the engaging hole 38a.
42 and 43 designate a switch for detecting a type of the disk D such as 2DD, 2HD and 2ED and a switch for detecting whether or not the disk D is writable, which are disposed on the chassis 1 through a base plate 44.
45 designates a reduction gear mechanism having a gear 46 engaged with the rack 19, which is disposed to the chassis 1 at the rear end side edge thereof.
47 and 48 designate positioning concave portions formed in a casing 3b of the disk cartridge 3, with which the protrusions 9 are engaged.
With the disk drive apparatus of this type, at the request for a reduction in size or request for a reduction in length dimension in recent years, the transverse head type that the head carriage 27 and the head arm 32 extend in the direction perpendicular to the inserted direction of the disk cartridge 3 is adopted instead of the so-called vertical head type that the head carriage 27 and the head arm 32 extend in the inserted direction of the disk cartridge 3.
There are two disk drive apparatus of the transverse head type: a disk drive apparatus in which the stepping motor 51 is disposed at the side of the inserted position of the disk cartridge 3 as shown in FIG. 8(A), and the head assembly 53 is moved by rotation of a lead screw 52 by driving of the stepping motor 51, and a disk drive apparatus in which the stepping motor 54 is disposed at the side of the inserted position of the disk cartridge 3 as shown in FIG. 8B, and the head assembly 56 is moved by movement of the rack 55 by driving of the stepping motor 54.
With such conventional disk drive apparatus, since the stepping motor 51, 54 was disposed at the side of the inserted position of the disk cartridge 3, the length dimension of the disk drive apparatus was reduce while the width dimension thereof was enlarged.
As a result appearance of a disk drive apparatus was not previously obtained with a reduction in size by decreasing not only the length dimension but the width dimension.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a disk drive apparatus which enables a reduction in both length dimension and width dimension for thereby decrease a size thereof.